Richard Joseph "Dick" Durbin (b. December 11, 1943, in East St. Louis, Illinois) is a Democratic member of the U.S. Senate for the state of Illinois. Additionally, Durbin serves as the Senate Majority Whip. He was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 1996.[1]

He is a member of the group of senators deemed the "Gang of Eight." This term is used to reference eight of the most influential Senators on immigration reform and includes four senators from each party.[3]

Based on analysis of multiple outside rankings, Durbin is one of the most reliable Democratic votes, meaning he can be considered a safe vote for the Democratic Party in Congress.

Biography

Durbin was born in East St. Louis, Illinois in 1943.

Education

Assumption High School (1962)

B.A. School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University (1966)

J.D. Georgetown University Law Center (1969)

Durbin was admitted to the Illinois bar in 1970, a year after graduating from Georgetown University Law Center. Durbin went on to practice law in Springfield, Illinois.

Issues

Controversy

Comments on incident between White House and Republican leaders

On October 24, 2013, the White House issued a statement saying “we regret the misunderstanding” about Durbin's account of a meeting between House Republicans and President Barack Obama.[6]

“While the quote attributed to a Republican lawmaker in the House GOP meeting with the President is not accurate, there was a miscommunication when the White House read out that meeting to Senate Democrats, and we regret the misunderstanding,” a White House official said in an email.[6]

Durbin posted on his Facebook wall addressing an incident that allegedly occurred during a White House meeting in which a Republican leader allegedly told Obama: “I cannot even stand to look at you.”[6] The Obama administration refuted the account and the GOP called for an apology by Durbin.[6]

Legislative actions

113th Congress

The second session of the 113th Congress enacted into law 114 out of the 3,036 introduced bills (3.8 percent). Comparatively, the 112th Congress had 4.2 percent of introduced bills enacted into law in the second session.[7] The Senate confirmed 13,949 out of 18,323 executive nominations received (76.1 percent). For more information pertaining to Durbin's voting record in the 113th Congress, please see the below sections.[8]

Transparency in NSA programs

Durbin announced on August 2, 2013, that the Senate Appropriations Committee had approved a measure that would require the NSA to make public declarations about its program.[13] Durbin, who is the assistant Senate majority leader and the chairman of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, said the measure was inserted into a Defense Department spending bill.[13] A spokesman for Durbin called it the first legislative action a congressional committee has approved since former NSA contractor Edward Snowden revealed the agency’s data collection program.[13]

Durbin’s measure strikes a delicate balance between a growing call for curbs on the NSA program and a reluctance on the part of the Obama administration and congressional leaders to sharply limit it.[13] Unlike a narrowly defeated measure in the House that would have barred the NSA from spending any money on the program, effectively killing it, Durbin’s proposal would allow it to continue but would require that the agency make public more information on the program, which the secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court authorized under Section 215 of the Patriot Act.[13]

The measure would require the agency to report the number of phone records it’s gathered and to make public the details of any other bulk data-collection programs it operates, including when they began, how much they cost and what types of records are being collected and to list any terrorist plots that the programs have thwarted.[13]

John Brennan CIA nomination

Durbin voted for the confirmation of John Brennan as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. The nomination was confirmed by the Senate on March 7, 2013, with a vote of 63 - 34. Most Democrats supported the nomination, while Republicans were somewhat divided with roughly one-third supporting the nomination.[14]

Economy

Government shutdown

During the shutdown in October 2013, the Senate rejected, down party lines, every House-originated bill that stripped the budget of funding for the Affordable Care Act. A deal was reached late on October 16, 2013, just hours before the debt ceiling deadline. The bill to reopen the government, H.R. 2775, lifted the $16.7 trillion debt limit and funds the government through January 15, 2014. Federal employees also received retroactive pay for the shutdown period. The only concession made by Senate Democrats was to require income verification for Obamacare subsidies.[15] The final vote on H.R. 2775 was 81-18, with all 18 votes against the bill from Republican members. Durbin voted with the Democratic Party for the bill.[16]

Statement on government shutdown

Discussing the possibility of a government shutdown, Durbin said on September 26, 2013,“If the House decides over the weekend come Friday, Saturday, whatever it is, that they’re going to give us a new bill to consider in the Senate: That is a concession on their part that we are going to shut down the government. A clean CR is the only way to meet this deadline."[17]

No Budget, No Pay Act of 2013

Durbin voted for H.R.325 -- No Budget, No Pay Act of 2013. The bill passed the Senate on January 31, 2013, with a vote of 64 - 34. The purpose of the bill was to temporarily suspended the debt ceiling and withhold the pay of members of Congress until a budget could be passed. The vote largely followed party lines with Democrats overwhelmingly supporting it and many Republicans in opposition to the bill.[14]

2013 Senate Budget Proposal

Durbin voted in favor of the 2013 Senate Budget Proposal.[14] On March 23, after an all-night debate that ended just before 5 a.m., by a 50 to 49 vote the Democratically controlled Senate approved its first budget in four years. No Republicans voted for the Senate plan, and four Democrats opposed it. All four are from red states and are up for re-election in 2014. Durbin was one of the four Democrats who voted against the budget proposal.[14]

The approved plan is a $3.7 trillion budget for 2014 and would provide a fast track for passage of tax increases, trim spending modestly and leave the government still deeply in the red for the next decade.

The approval of a budget in the Senate began the process of setting up contentious, and potentially fruitless, negotiations with the Republican-controlled House starting in April to reconcile two vastly different plans for dealing with the nation’s economic and budgetary problems.

The House plan would have brought the government’s taxes and spending into balance by 2023 with cuts to domestic spending even below the levels of automatic across-the-board cuts for federal programs now, and it orders up dramatic and controversial changes to Medicare and the tax code.

The Senate plan differed greatly, and included $100 billion in upfront infrastructure spending to bolster the economy and calls for special fast-track rules to overhaul the tax code and raise $975 billion over 10 years in legislation that could not be filibustered. Even with that tax increase and prescribed spending cuts, the plan approved by the Senate would leave the government with a $566 billion annual deficit in 10 years, and $5.2 trillion in additional debt over that window.

Immigration

Gang of Eight

Durbin is a member of the group of senators deemed the "Gang of Eight." This term is used to reference eight of the most influential Senators on immigration reform and includes four senators from each party.[3] The group calls for comprehensive and bipartisan immigration legislation that includes their "four basic pillars":

1. A “tough but fair path to citizenship . . . .contingent upon securing our borders and tracking whether legal immigrants have left the country as required”;

4. Setting up a system for admitting future workers (although the term “guest worker” is not used).[18]

Mexico-U.S. border

Durbin voted against Senate Amendment 1197 -- Requires the Completion of the Fence Along the United States-Mexico Border. The amendment was rejected by the Senate on June 18, 2013, with a vote of 39 - 54. The purpose of the amendment was to require the completion of 350 miles of fence described in the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 before registered provisional immigrant status may be granted. It would also require 700 miles of fence be completed before the status of registered provisional immigrants may be changed to permanent resident status. The vote followed party lines.[14]

Social Issues

Violence Against Women (2013)

Durbin voted for S.47 -- Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013. The bill was passed by the Senate on February 12, 2013, with a vote of 78 - 22. The purpose of the bill was to combat violence against women, from domestic violence to international trafficking in persons. All 22 dissenting votes were cast by Republicans.[14]

Gun control

Following the September 16, 2013, shooting at the Washington D.C. Navy Yard, Durbin introduced the possibility of debate over gun control reform.[19] During a Senate floor speech, Durbin said that Americans agree that some "common sense" changes are needed to prevent mentally ill people from obtaining firearms.[19]

"Those sorts of things might have been warning signals," Durbin said. "Questions are raised: How can a man with that kind of a background end up getting the necessary security clearance for a military contractor to go into this Navy Yard, to be permitted to go into this Navy Yard? How did he get these weapons into the Navy Yard?"[19]

"If we value our right for ourselves and our families and our children to be safe, if we value this Constitution, if we value the right of American to enjoy their liberties with reasonable limitations, then we need to return to issues that are of importance," Durbin added later.[19]

Previous congressional sessions

Fiscal Cliff

Durbin voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. The bill was passed in the Senate by a 89 - 8 vote on January 1, 2013.[20]

Senate Judiciary Committee

Dick Durbin was first appointed to the Senate Judiciary Committee shortly after he was sworn in on January of 1997 and served until 1999.[21] Durbin was re-appointed to the committee in 2001 when the Democrats regained control of the Senate after the 2000 elections.[21] The Illinois Senator has been on the committee since then and has continued a long period of representation on the powerful committee for the State of Illinois.[21] Former Senator Paul Simon served on the committee from 1985 to 1997 before Dick Durbin became Senator. The other influential Illinois Senator to serve on the Senate Judiciary Committee was Everett Dirksen, who served on the committee from 1955 to 1969.[21]

Durbin serves as the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law. He also serves on the Senate Judiciary Subcommittees on Crime and Drugs, The Constitution, Immigration, Refugees and Border Security, Terrorism and Homeland Security.[22]

Elections

2014

2008

On November 4, 2008, Durbin won re-election to the United States Senate. He defeated Steve Sauerberg (R), Kathy Cummings (G), Larry A. Stafford (L), Chad N. Koppie (I) and Patricia Elaine Beard (I) in the general election.[24]

U.S. Senate, Illinois General Election, 2008

Party

Candidate

Vote %

Votes

Democratic

Richard J. DurbinIncumbent

67.8%

3,615,844

Republican

Steve Sauerberg

28.5%

1,520,621

Green

Kathy Cummings

2.2%

119,135

Libertarian

Larry A. Stafford

0.9%

50,224

Constitution Party of Illinois

Chad N. Koppie

0.5%

24,059

Independent

Patricia Elaine Beard

0%

1

Total Votes

5,329,884

Full history

To view the full congressional electoral history for Dick Durbin, click [show] to expand the section.

2002

On November 5, 2002, Dick Durbin won re-election to the United States Senate. He defeated Jim Durkin (R) and Steven Burgauer (L) in the general election.[25]

U.S. Senate, Illinois General Election, 2002

Party

Candidate

Vote %

Votes

Democratic

Dick Durbinincumbent

60.3%

2,103,766

Republican

Jim Durkin

38%

1,325,703

Libertarian

Steven Burgauer

1.6%

57,382

Total Votes

3,486,851

1996

On November 5, 1996, Dick Durbin won election to the United States Senate. He defeated Al Salvi (R), Steven H. Perry (Reform), Robin J. Miller (L), Chad Koppie (U.S. Taxpayers) and James E. Davis (Natural Law) in the general election.[26]

U.S. Senate, Illinois General Election, 1996

Party

Candidate

Vote %

Votes

Democratic

Dick Durbin

54.3%

2,341,744

Republican

Al Salvi

36.8%

1,587,021

Reform

Steven H. Perry

8%

346,408

Libertarian

Robin J. Miller

0.5%

22,548

U.S. Taxpayers

Chad Koppie

0.2%

7,606

Natural Law

James E. Davis

0.1%

4,606

N/A

Write-in

0%

1,458

Total Votes

4,311,391

Campaign donors

Comprehensive donor information for Durbin is available dating back to 2002. Based on available campaign finance records, Durbin raised a total of $18,925,881 during that time period. This information was last updated on April 3, 2013.[27]

Lifetime voting record

According to the website GovTrack, Durbin missed 51 of 5,168 roll call votes, which is 1.0% from January 1997 to March 2013. This amounts to 1.00%, which is better than the median of 1.7% among currently serving senators as of March 2013.[38]

Congressional staff salaries

2011

The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Durbin paid his congressional staff a total of $2,883,154 in 2011. He ranks 13th on the list of the highest paid Democratic senatorial staff salaries and ranks 15th overall of the highest paid senatorial staff salaries in 2011. Overall, Illinois ranks 9th in average salary for senatorial staff. The average U.S. Senate congressional staff was paid $2,529,141.70 in fiscal year 2011.[39]

Net worth

2011

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org, Durbin's net worth as of 2011 was estimated between $1,208,567 and $1,443,564. That averages to $1,326,065, which is lower than the average net worth of Democratic senators in 2011 of $20,795,450. His average net worth increased by 20.60% from 2010.[40]

2010

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org, Durbin's net worth as of 2010 was estimated between $999,551 and $1,199,549. That averages to $1,099,550, which is lower than the average net worth of Democratic senators in 2010 of $19,383,524 .[41]

Personal

Durbin and his wife, Loretta, had three children, Christine, Jennifer and Paul, as well as one grandchild, Alex. Christine died on November 1, 2008 due to a congenital heart condition.[42] They currently reside in Springfield. Senator Durbin makes approximately 50 round trips a year between Washington and Illinois.[43]

Recent news

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